Love Me, Hate Me, Kill Me
by maymayB
Summary: Bulma holds the key to the universe's destruction. Her father sends her to Planet Vegeta to be put under the Royal Family's protection, and Vegeta will stop at nothing to keep her safe... but nothing is what it seems... REVAMPED!
1. The start

**Hey guys! Remember this fic? Yeah, my very first one… I decided to pull it down and revamp it. It hurt seeing people reading it, knowing that it was full of mistakes, short icky sentences and whatnot… so I'm improving the fic! Special thanks to Springandbysummerfall for beta'ing this bad boy ;)**

**Also, if you haven't already, check out Mallie_3 and my Bulma and Vegeta fanfic video podcast. And add yourself onto our community, the links are on my profile page.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, that is why I'm poor.**

* * *

Pain. She was in pure pain.

'Where am I?'

Her left eye cracked open but her right stayed stubbornly shut, and she couldn't budge her arms or legs. Looking down, she spied a wood beam on top of her. Her vision was hazy, probably due to a concussion, and the smoke and cinders floating in the air hindered her vision even more as she tried to make sense of her surroundings.

She glanced down at herself. Her arm looked like it was hanging on by a thread, and every time she took in a shallow breath, there was a gurgling noise that came rattling up from her chest.

And, she tasted blood, lots and lots of blood.

Yelling could be heard a short distance away from her and an alarm that made her already throbbing head want to explode.

"BULMA!" A man frantically screamed.

"Maybe she's not in here," another man's voice called out.

She tried yelling to them, but the only thing that came out of her mouth was a weak moan which the alarms in the distance drowned out.

"No, she is, she said she needed to grab something- THERE! I see her, Kakarot!"

She closed her eye, listening to feet scramble over the wreckage. The pain she was in was lessening. The feel of the sweet darkness pulled at her, making her body go numb.

"Help me get this beam off of her!"

The darkness called to her. She wanted so very much to succumb and drift off into nothingness, but knew she should hold on.

She sighed softly when she felt the weight of the beam lift off her and again when warm, calloused hands softly touched her battered face.

"Gods, Woman… Please be alive." The husky voice of the man above pleaded. She felt him feel for her pulse. "She's alive. Go to the med wing, get Dr. Lance." She heard the other man run off. "Woman, stay alive." She knew whoever he was, he was important to her. He meant a great deal to her, but in her dazed state, she was unable to comprehend who he was, not to mention her name or the date.

Shell shocked.

The man sounded like he was trying hard to keep it together as he growled. "Damnit, why didn't I go with you? Stay alive Bulma."

She felt him pull her up into his arms, cradling her gently in his strong arms.

Safety enveloped her as he lifted her up off of the ground. She knew that the man that held her would make sure she would live.

The darkness was pulling at her, more so than before, and she was too weak to fight it anymore. She exhaled in relief…and then, there was nothing.

* * *

_Months Earlier…._

Bulma sat happily in her and her father's favorite place: the weaponry development lab that was located on their compound.

Her father was one of the largest weapons specialists, developers, and brokers in the universe. Ever since Bulma could remember, she spent her time down in the depths of the R&D wing of the labs, watching her dad design and develop weaponry. She learned how to dismantle and reassemble a proton bomb by age six, proving that she too shared her father's legendary smarts. She was enthralled with how weapons worked, and she loved testing them even more, to her father's chagrin, and she was a frequent visitor to the medical wing because of it.

He always told her she was lucky she hadn't blown any limbs off. She mostly suffered from concussions, gashes, blown ear drums…nothing too major.

She was happily tinkering on a new gun, something that she was developing for the military of a far off planet. Just when she was getting into her project, her vidcom chirped. Looking up at the screen on the wall closest to her, she smiled, seeing that it was her father.

She hit a button, answering the call. "Dad! How's the contract bidding going?" she asked, without looking up at the screen. She was too busy fiddling with a tricky mechanism and didn't want to stop her progress.

"Bulma…" His voice seemed stressed and somewhat panicked.

She looked up. Her father's worn face looked at her. "What's wrong?" She asked.

"Bulma, listen to me." He said sternly, his eyebrows furrowing as he spoke. She knew that look; it meant let him speak, don't interrupt, this is super important. "I need you to take the Genesis project file, copy it onto a thumb drive and destroy any and all research, notes, anything that has to do with it. Keep the thumb drive with you and keep it safe. Do not under any circumstances let it out of your possession." He looked behind him and then looked back. "I need you to contact King Vegeta. Tell him that the Emperor has intercepted my ship. He will help you."

She shook her head. What the hell is going on? "Are you in danger? Dad-"

"Bulma," he said sternly, making her stop. "Please, I don't have much time left. I have about 2 minutes until the Emperor's men breaches my ship and takes it over." His hardened look softened. "I want you to be strong. Listen to King Vegeta. Do what he says. He'll protect you." He paused and took a deep breath. "I love you daughter. You've made me proud."

"You're talking like we won't see each other again! And why do I need protection? Dad please, just tell me what the hell is going on!"

He gave her sad smile. "This will most likely be the last time we speak to each other. I am hoping that you will not be pulled any further into this than you already are…" He looked over his shoulder as an explosion went off behind him. "Be strong Bulma. I know you are. You have a fantastic life ahead of you. I love you."

The vidcom went black.

Bulma sat there, staring at the black screen, dumbstruck.

Just what in the bloody hell just happened? She was dizzy from the information her father just laid upon her...let alone the fact that he was sure he wasn't going to survive much longer.

'NO!' she screamed mentally. 'I refuse to believe he will die!'

She got up from her chair, pushing the thought to the back of her mind. She did what her father had asked of her; she saved all files pertaining to Project Genesis onto a thumb drive and stuck it in the back pocket of her jeans. She then destroyed all files that had to do with the project, without bothering to go through the files she had saved, figuring she'd go through them later.

When she finished the task, she walked over to her vidcom again and hailed King Vegeta. A woman answered the call. From what Bulma could see, she was dressed in a black uniform, the Saiyan insignia on her chest.

"Your code and the purpose of this call?" She said in a business-like tone.

"11488-e," Bulma replied. "This is Bulma Briefs. I must speak to King Vegeta. It's an emergency."

The woman looked at something off screen, probably checking to see if Bulma was who she said she was and if she was on the list of people able to speak with the King personally.

"One moment, I'll connect you."

Bulma reached in her back pocket and took out the thumb drive, fiddling with it while she waited for the King. Just what was the Genesis Project anyway? She wasn't familiar with it. When she was copying the files she had noticed that the file was just as old as she was… that was probably why she wasn't aware of its existence.

"Miss Bulma." The Kings rough voice made Bulma jump. She turned her attention to the screen.

The King's scarred face smiled at her warmly. She had known the King since she was three. He and her father were good friends, old Military friends, and, of course, business partners. She often found herself traveling with her dad to many planets and working closely with many of the leaders of the northern and southern galaxies, helping them beef up security, upgrading their military's weapon arsenal and such. But she found her visits to King Vegeta's planet the most memorable… mostly due to King's son, Prince Vegeta, who was 4 years older than she. He always made a point to pick on her or goad her into some sort of physical brawl. But as they got older, the physical brawls had turned into verbal assaults. They couldn't be in the same room without both their parents having to separate them. The King and her father always thought their rivalry was hilarious. Bulma and the Prince thought otherwise.

She hadn't seen the Prince in 9 years. Since he turned 15, he joined the royal military. It was tradition on their planet for the crowned prince to be active in it, and he had been off world every time Bulma visited his home planet, which was fine with her.

"This must be important if you are calling me." He raised an eyebrow and rubbed his goatee.

She took a deep breath, telling herself to stay strong. "My father just called, told me to tell you that the Emperor has breached his ship, and to destroy all files pertaining to the Genesis Project. And that you would know what to do."

The King's eyes twitched at the mention of the project and his hand paused on his chin. "Have you saved the information before you destroyed the main files?"

"Yes." She nodded.

"No one else knows of this, correct?"

"Correct."

He pinched the bridge of his nose and gave a gruff sigh. "Alright. I need for you to pack up, immediately. As of right now, you are in need of protection. You are not safe."

Bulma scoffed at his comment. She was very capable of taking care of herself. And she was getting frustrated with both he and her father underestimating her capabilities to defend herself.

"Wait, just wait." Bulma pounded her fist onto her work table. "Just what the hell is going on? Why all the secrecy? Why am I leaving? What's so important about this project? And why has the Emperor taken my father?" She was started to lose it. Her eyes were wet from the tears that had escaped her eyes and her cheeks were burning red. She quickly dashed them off her cheeks and stared at the King, waiting for his response.

"I'm sure it is no secret to you that your father was on the council for the southern galaxy alliance." He said matter-of-factly.

She knew. The council was made up of leaders and dignitaries of the 9 planets of south galaxy, her home planet Earth included. Their main objective was to keep each planet safe and to get away from the Emperors stronghold. The council had an intricate ring of spies, and her father had run some intelligence for the council a couple of times. He had the perfect cover. He was constantly going from planet to planet on weapon bidding trips.

The emperor was a tyrant that made Darth Vader look like a pansy. He enslaved planets that dared to retaliate against him, taking over the planet's trade and natural resources and taking all the profit. He would bribe the weaker planets royalty, and in exchange for slaves and the help from their military forces, the emperor would ensure their safety.

He killed, raped, and destroyed innocent lives for money and power.

He continued: "All that's left now for him to take over are the planets in the southern galaxy. He hasn't been able to do much to the alliance. But he's found a way... sort of."

"How so? I thought the southern galaxy alliance is unbreakable. We have the strongest military forces combined. He hasn't been able to do anything to us."

The King nodded in agreement. "Yes, but about 20 years ago, your father came up with a weapon that could destroy a planet with one shot. He never put it into production."

"Then why develop it?" She shook her head.

"He was asked to by the council of the alliance. It was a contingency plan just in case we ever needed to use it against the Emperor. One year ago your father found that a spy was working in the R&D department of your company. The spy got a hold of the plans of the weapon. Thankfully your father found out when the spy was in the middle of transmitting the plans to the emperor. Only half of the plans were transmitted and not the whole file. He knew that the scientists and weapons specialists the emperor has on his payroll are idiots and wouldn't get it to work properly. He knew it would be a matter of time until they would try again to steal it or take him away to try to force him to make the weapon."

"I can't believe he never told me any of this!"

"He didn't want you dragged into this." The King said. "Surely you understand, Bulma. He had only your best interest in mind."

Bulma grunted. "Please, I blow stuff up for a living, I'm in danger everyday… for god sake I've been on active battle fields!" She shook her head. Yelling at the King was useless. "Alright, so the Emperor has taken my dad to make him build the weapon, and since my father is as stubborn as a mule, he will die before he does… "

"That's for damn sure." He smirked. "You will need to be guarded. Once he finds out that your father will not help him, he might come for you. Besides your father, you are probably the only other person that is capable of making such a weapon."

She nodded again in agreement.

"Of all the planets, he fears mine the most. You will be safe with us. We will have to keep this information quiet; we don't need the whole universe knowing this information. We will have to concoct some sort of story that won't raise any eyebrows as to why you are staying with the royal family all of the sudden… in the meantime, let's concentrate on getting you here to my planet, safely… Let's see." He scratched his graying goatee and looked down at something Bulma couldn't see on the screen. "Ah, yes, you are in luck. My son is returning home from a mission, and he is in your quadrant. I will have him pick you up on his way home."

Bulma groaned. This was the cherry on top of the crap sundae of which was her day. "Your son. Prince Vegeta. The boy who but fish guts in my hair… that same guy?"

King Vegeta stifled a chuckle. "I promise you Bulma, there will be no throwing of fish guts."

She wiped her face with her palm. "Ok…when will he be here?"

"15 hours."

"Guess I should start packing my crap up."

The King nodded and smiled at her. "I'll see you in person in 5 days, Miss Bulma."

* * *

beta'd by Springandbysummerfall


	2. The Plan

**For those of you who are reading this fic for the first time, I've tweaked some things… Vegeta is tall in this story. He is tall, get over it. **

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* * *

The Prince ran his calloused fingers through his spiky black hair. He was sore, sleep deprived and very cranky. And the conversation he was having with his father was making his mood even worse. He was to deviate from his course and pick up that annoying blue haired human and bring her back home with him.

He was the crowned prince of Vegetasei, not a babysitter.

"Boy, you are not to tell your men about this situation. This information cannot be leaked."

"What the hell am I supposed to tell my crew? They are going to wonder why we are picking up a random woman and delaying their arrival home." He roared at the small video screen on his wall.

The King smirked. "For now just tell them we are picking up a VIP for the summer celebrations. Once she is on board, I will need to speak to the both of you."

He glared at his father and the elder man to smirk at him….He thought this was funny!

"Why do I feel this is only the beginning of this torture?"

The King's smirk turned into a toothy smile before he ended the feed, leaving Vegeta to stare angrily at the blank screen.

The prince growled as he got up from his chair and stalked to the control room of his ship.

"Change of course Kakarot, we are to stop off at planet Earth."

The man sitting down at the captains chair looked up at the Prince from the control screens, surprised at what he heard. "Yes sir… but why?"

Vegeta pinched the bridge of his nose. "We are picking up a VIP for the damned summer celebrations." He said through gritted teeth. "We are to pick her up at the Briefs's weaponry compound on the northern side of the planet. The coordinates should be in the nav computer already."

"Her?" Kakarot raised an eye brow.

Vegeta glowered at him, daring him to push the issue any further. He just needed an excuse to clobber somebody. "Just do it. Tell the rest of the crew of the change of plans. Our arrival home will be delayed by 3 days."

Kakarot groaned. He didn't want to tell the crew they were going to take longer to get home, they would lynch him.

The prince didn't wait for an acknowledgment. He turned around and stomped back to his room to take a nap. He had a sneaking suspicion that this was going to be the start of something…. He wasn't sure why or what, he wasn't sure if it was good or bad, he just had a feeling.

* * *

Bulma was in her room packing the rest of her clothes up. She looked at her watch, she still had 3 hours until the Prince was expected. Her room, save for a few odds and ends, was bare. Since King Vegeta wasn't specific as to how long her stay on his planet would be, she thought the safest thing to do would be to pack up almost everything she owned.

She absently looked at her reflection in the mirror next to her. She noted the dark circles around her eyes. Sleep escaped her at the moment, there was too much to do. There was too much going on in her brain that would have prevented her from getting any kind of sleep.

She ran a hand through her waist long blue hair and tried to ignore the morose look in her blue eyes. She slapped a fake smile on her face and then turned back to the task at hand, thinking, as she often did, of what attributes she inherited from her mother. Did she get her high cheek bones and good looks from her? Perhaps her pouty lips, fast metabolism and silver tongue… She had never met the woman. Every time she would bring her up to her father, he would either change the subject or leave the room.

She was a bit of a sore subject with her dad.

Her frame certainly wasn't given to her by her father. He was a burly man of 6'3. He would always poke fun at her, saying that it was hilarious to see a little blue haired thing shooting automatic pistols or throwing hand grenades. She remembered the time she had made her dad laugh hysterically when they were giving a weapons demonstration to some soldiers of some planet she couldn't remember. While she was in the middle of showing them how to reload a new model of rifle, some soldier came up and pinched her ass. She reacted quickly, planting her knee directly in the soldier's junk, making him sink to his knees before punching him square in the jaw. She laughed a little at the memory. She wasn't taken seriously by many. Mostly because of her age. She was only 20 and she was a girl to boot. Never mind the fact that she was also good at what she did.

Finishing up, she looked around her bedroom one last time, silently saying goodbye to her sanctuary and to this chapter of her life. She wasn't sure if she wanted to welcome this new one. Bulma knew her father had intended for her not to be involved in this. But she knew she was knee deep in it already.

* * *

Kakarot and Vegeta exited their ship and entered the hangar of the weapons compound.

"Where the hell is she?" Vegeta growled. "We don't have time for this."

Kakarot shook his head. His prince was so very impatient.

"Hello?" A young, blue haired woman peeked around a neatly arranged pile of boxes.

Kakarot bowed his head slightly. "Hello, my name is Kakarot, and this is Prince Vegeta of Planet Vegetasei" he said, motioning to the prince. "We are looking for Bulma Briefs, we are to escort her to planet Vegetasei."

She stepped out from behind the box, when she came into full view, the prince blanched… this couldn't be Bulma… not the same snot nosed brat he knew so very long ago.

The woman standing before him was beautiful. She had the longest and the most beautiful blue hair. She was curvy in all the right places and had the most hypnotic bright blue eyes. Her hands were resting on twin hand guns that were holstered on either side of her hips, the hardened expression on her face making her look even more enticing to the Prince. He quickly regained his composure and crossed his arms, back to looking uncaring and slightly annoyed.

Bulma stared at the prince as well. He was damned handsome. He was tall, just like his father, and had black spiky hair that was cut short, but reminded her of a flame that couldn't be controlled. His eyes were as black as the night sky, and oh my god was he built. The outfit he was wearing most definitely accentuated his toned physique. Tight black sleeveless shirt that hugged his ripped chest and abs, a pair of black and grey digi camouflage military pants, and a pair of basic military boots.

Just her luck, the guy that she had loathed as a child had to grow up to be one of the most handsome men she had ever laid eyes on. Fantastic.

"Uh… Are you Bulma?" Kakarot looked back and forth at his prince and at who he assumed was Bulma with a slight smirk on his face… this was interesting. To anybody else, if you looked at the Prince, he looked disinterested. But being the Prince's best friend, he saw that he was trying quite hard not to stare at the striking woman that stood across from him.

"Huh? OH! Yes, I'm Bulma." She snapped back from her trance. She extended her hand to Kakarot. He took it graciously and shook it and gave the prince a sideways glance, hinting to him that he should do the same.

He raised an eyebrow at his subordinate and extended his hand to Bulma reluctantly. As his hand made contact with hers, he felt a jolt of electricity where her soft skin touched his. 'Weird,' he thought.

"Vegeta, it's nice to see you again." She said with confidence, looking his straight in his black eyes.

He rose an eyebrow at her. "Yes, it's been a long time... human."

Bulma's shoulder slumped slightly. Really? He would call her human just to get under her skin when they were little. He always told her Saiyan's were a superior race compared to humans. She wasn't sure why him calling her human irked her so. It just did. Maybe it was the way he said it… He had a tendency of saying things in that special way that made her want to punch him square in the jaw.

"Nice to know you haven't changed." She said grumbled.

"Madam Bulma, are these boxes to be loaded onto the ship?" Kakarot asked, eyeing the two of them questionably.

"Yes they are." She turned her gaze back onto the taller of the two. "There are 25 in total; I hope you have the room."

"Yes madam, I'll send some men down here to load them right away." Kakarot turned and walked towards the ship to get help.

Vegeta turned on his heel and headed towards the ship as well. "While we are waiting for your junk to be loaded, my father wishes to speak to the both of us." He said flatly over his shoulder.

She rolled her eyes as she followed him. After all these years his manners still sucked.

"It's not junk." She said as she caught up with him as he entered the ship.

"Whatever." He grumbled and quickened his pace.

She followed silently but started to lag behind as she took in her surroundings. The ship was huge!

He looked behind him, noticing she was a few steps behind him. "This way," he said irritably.

She followed him into what looked to be a conference room, complete with a long table that could sit fifteen people easily. Vegeta punched in a code on the small control panel that sat in the middle of the table. The wall facing Bulma slid open, revealing a large screen and the face of the same woman that Bulma got when she hailed the King.

"Prince Vegeta." The woman bowed her head. "What may I do for you?"

"My father is expecting my call." He said dismissively.

"I'll connect you."

Bulma looked at Vegeta. He looked agitated, with his arms crossed and his eyes narrowed at the screen. She shook her head again. Nothing had changed. Well, with his demeanor, anyway.

The Kings face appeared on the screen. "Hello Boy. Ah, I see you have fetched Bulma." He put emphasis on the word fetch. Vegeta's arm muscles tensed, as did his jaw muscles. "Bulma, my girl, I'm glad to see you are doing well." She nodded. "I'm busy so I'll cut to the chase. Since we do not want your visit to make people suspicious, the Queen and I have decided that we will be saying that Vegeta is sponsoring Bulma for the summer."

"WHAT?" Vegeta bellowed.

"What does sponsor mean?" Bulma asked. It couldn't be good judging by how Vegeta just reacted.

"It means Vegeta is… oh what's the word?" He paused, smiling as he tapped his chin. "Courting you." He looked directly at Vegeta, a large toothy grin gracing his battle worn face.

…Clearly this was hot topic between the two men, and unfortunately, she was in the middle of it.

"Courting me? You mean like…dating?"

"Are you an idiot?" Vegeta screamed at his father, ignoring Bulma altogether. "Won't people get a little suspicious after a few months? Once the royal council gets wind of this they will expect something that will never happen."

Bulma raised her brow in question. "What will never happen?"

Vegeta turned to her and snarled. "Marriage." He spewed the word with disgust.

She was too tired to argue at the King's idea. She wiped her palm down her face. "Look, I don't like the idea much more than you do. The thought of being 'courted' by a guy who has insulted me three times in a matter of a ten minute time span, quite frankly, makes me want to jump off a thirty story building. But, if this ruse will help keep the plans of the weapon safe from unwanted hands, then fine." She turned to Vegeta. "After a couple of months, we can announce that it didn't work out and then you can go back to doing what egocentric assholes do…"

"Hmph." The Prince narrowed his eyes at Bulma. "Yes, but then after our 'failed attempt' at 'dating,' people will wonder why you haven't moved back to your planet." He said through gritted teeth.

She hated to admit it, but he was right. She turned to the screen. "He's right, your highness."

King Vegeta held his hands, a silent plea to get them both to calm down. "Let's just take one thing at a time. When that time comes, we will come up with something." The King was smirking now, looking like he was enjoying a private joke. Apparently the situation he had put the two of them in was funny. "The kick- off of the Summer Celebration is in six days. We will make your debut then at the ball, Bulma. In the meantime, I suggest you both try and practice getting along… She will be closely watched. We need this to work." That last part Bulma assumed was meant for Vegeta. "There will be visitors for our Summer festivities that are sympathetic to the Emperor. You both need to work together. They will be watching you closely, Bulma. We are hoping that the Emperor and his familiars won't suspect you of your knowledge of your father's project." The King's smile vanished and was replaced with a serious look. "Bulma, Vegeta will protect you." The King turned his gaze on his son. "That is why your mother and I decided for you to 'court' Bulma. You two will always be together and it won't raise suspicion. This plan will work, as long as you two act like adults."

Vegeta gave out a low growl and Bulma looked to the heavens as she shook her head. "See you in 5 days," the King said, just before Vegeta angrily pushed the button on the control panel to hang up on him.

Yup, this was going to be interesting…

* * *

The trip to Vegetasei was uneventful, sort of. Vegeta practically avoided her. But when they did cross paths an insult was said or a dirty look was given, which resulted in a minor screaming match, which always ended with Vegeta growling at her and Bulma flipping him off. They did have one doozy of an argument: on the second day of their journey, she decided to tune up the ships weapons, which included the ship's torpedos. When she unhooked the main power source to the torpedo system, an alarm sounded at the cockpit, which interrupted Vegeta and Kakarot's conversation, which in turn infuriated the Prince.

He marched down to the belly of the ship where she was and screamed: "Hey Woman! The torpedo's aren't broken, stop screwing with them!"

She ignored him and continued to tighten a bolt that was a little loose on the base of the weapon.

"Did you hear me you wench? Or are your feeble human ears too weak to hear me? Stop messing with my ship!" He bellowed.

That was it! She was stressed and on the edge. The only thing that was keeping her sane was keeping herself busy and the Prince was not helping her mental state. She picked up the closest thing to her, which was a wrench, and chucked it at him with all her might.

If it weren't for his fast reaction it would have hit his head. He stood there in shock. Did she really just do that? Never ever had anyone dared to do something so brazen. He turned around and saw the dent it made behind him and looked back at her. He had to admit, he was a little impressed with her strength. He looked back to find her glaring dangerously at him.

"Do. Not. Screw. With. Me." She said through gritted teeth. She glared at him for another few moments, making sure she got her point across, and then went back to work.

He was at a loss for words. He couldn't kill her, he couldn't throttle her either. His father would have his head on a spit if he even attempted to do one or the other. So, he just left, shaking his head.

After she was done tuning up every weapon on board, she kept busy doing other things.

She got to know the crew of the ship. They actually talked to her since she spoke "weapons talk" and answered questions about her new hand gun line that was coming out. Something that a Saiyan would never use, since they used ki, but it peaked their interest all the same.

She would help the cook prepare meals… She even scored some brownie points with everyone when she made a couple cakes for the crew. Of course Vegeta had something crappy to say about it. He declared that he'd had better cake and hers was just 'OK'. She just rolled her eyes at him and went back to the kitchen to bake another. Usually, if she was under pressure or severely stressed, she'd do target practice with the loudest or biggest rifle or machine gun she could find. But, since shooting a gun in a ship rocketing through space was frowned upon, she found that baking calmed her nerves.

Bulma also got to know Kakarot. He was the most friendly out of everyone she met. He was Vegeta's first in command, the ships pilot, and the prince's best friend, and she learned that he was engaged to a girl named Chichi.

"She's one of the palace bakers." Kakarot said as he ate a piece of her cake. "I won't tell her this, but your cake is almost as good as hers."

Bulma laughed. "Your secret is safe with me." They were sitting in the cafeteria area of the ship, eating what was left over of her cake with a glass of milk. "How did you meet her?"

"I've known her since I was 16, she was 15. She was the baker's apprentice. Vegeta and I were almost always in the kitchen eating or trying to sneak off with the King's alcohol. She caught us one day trying to steal a couple of bottles of his majesties oldest bottles of brandy… we've been together ever since." He smiled warmly at the memory. Bulma could tell he loved her very much.

"You will have to meet her! She is very nice."

"I'd like that very much." Bulma paused. "So, is Vegeta always this grumpy, or is it because I'm around? I think I'm cramping his style."

Kakarot chuckled. "Don't take it personally. He's always like this. Vegeta is a very, uhh, well he's just, well, he's an ass. But once you get to know him, he's actually a great guy."

Bulma rose an eyebrow at him. "Kakarot, I've known him longer than you, and he's been an ass since the first day we've met. I just thought that time and maturity would have made him at least a little more civilized and more enjoyable to be around."

Kakarot chuckled. "Don't give up on him. I seriously think you will do him a lot of good. He needs a girl that can dish it as well as take it. I can see why the king chose you for him to sponsor," he said as he rose out of his chair. "Well, Bulma, I must get back to the flight deck. Only 10 more hours, and we'll be home."

Bulma smiled at him as he left. It was late, but she wasn't tired, so she sat there for a few minutes and then shifted in her seat so she could look out the rather large port hole and watch as the stars flew by.

She was in a thoughtful trance, thinking about how she was going to pull off this whole "sponsoring" thing and make it look believable. Her thoughts then shifted to her dad, and if he was alive still. Was he being tortured to death, while she sat there?

That last thought made her eyes water. All the thoughts that she had been trying to not think about were now bubbling to the surface.

* * *

Vegeta watched her from the door way, her back facing him. He needed to talk to her, but the sniffles that were coming out of her made him hesitate. He didn't know how to handle a crying woman. His little sister, yes, but she was a child. She cried at the drop of a hat. But a full grown woman was a different thing altogether.

He must have made a noise because she stiffened and looked over her shoulder. She quickly wiped her eyes when she noticed it was him.

The prince brought a chair over and sat next to her. He didn't say anything. He just sat there and looked at the passing stars.

Bulma looked at him through the veil of her eyelashes. Was he being nice to her? He wasn't saying anything. But the mere fact that he was sitting next to her and not saying something about her weak human emotions or how her cake tasted mediocre made Bulma's head spin.

She waited until her eyes were dried of her tears and then cleared her throat. There was an awkward silence, she wasn't sure if she should say something... or should she wait till he said something?

Thankfully he spoke first. "I think we should talk about our situation. My father is right. We need to make this-" he motioned with his pointer finger at himself and her a couple times, "look believable. It's one thing to act like we have been in front of my crew, it's another when we will be face to face with more important people. Especially if you will be living in the palace. The gossip there is stupid, it spreads like wild fire." The prince had spent the better part of the last two days thinking about what his father had told them. They needed to act like the adults they were, which meant he had to swallow his pride and actually try to get along with the woman better. He didn't know why they were always at each other's throats. He truly couldn't explain it.

His mother had told him years ago it was because he liked her. He promptly laughed at her and rolled his eyes as an adolescent boy would.

"Yes Mother, I would LIKE to see her walk off a cliff." He retorted.

His mother smiled sweetly and patted him on the shoulder.

Bulma shook her head in agreement. "Agreed." She sighed deeply and then turned to face him. "So be nice to each other is a given. But if people are going to be watching us, then I think we should get to know each other a little better."

"Alright, what do you want to know?" He asked as he propped his feet up on the sill of the port whole.

"Hmmm, what do you like to do in your spare time? What are your hobbies? You know, besides being grumpy and a pompous ass all the time."

He glared at her for a few moments and then looked out the porthole. "Well, when I'm not on some sort of military mission, or trying to reach the legendary, I enjoy crossbow hunting and reading."

"Really?" Not the answer she expected. She was halfway to thinking he would say, 'I enjoy torturing puppy dogs and working on my scowls in the mirror daily.' "Why would you crossbow hunt?" she asked, dumbly. Even she knew that the Saiyan race rarely, if ever, used any kind of weaponry while engaged in hand to hand combat. Their powerful ki was their weapon.

"It's a primitive weapon that calls for skill and accuracy." He shrugged and then looked at her, a bored look upon his sculpted face. "When I am home I don't have much time to do much else. My father wants me present in some of the council meetings and he also has me deal with Palace court issues. I'm being groomed to become King someday. There's not much time to have fun." He took a deep breath. "What about you? What do you like to do, besides blow things up?" His question was strained, and Bulma could tell that small talk was not his forte.

"Well, I do enjoy blowing stuff up… but right now, well, before this shit started, I was teaching myself how to ride a motorcycle. My dad didn't want me to. He says it's too dangerous." Bulma laughed.

And to her surprise, Vegeta let a chuckle out.

"Are you serious? You put together bombs and he thinks a motorcycle will kill you." He shook his head and chuckled again.

"I know, right? Besides that, I also like to read, watch movies and listen to music." She paused. "So what exactly is the Summer Celebration all about?"

"It's been tradition for Planet Vegetasei to invite our allies to our planet for the duration of the summer months. There are a lot of balls and tournaments and it allows the planetary leaders to meet. This summer we are celebrating the bicentennial of the defeat of the Tuffles. My great, great grandfather defeated them in, what was said to be the bloodiest of battles ever to be fought." He shrugged and looked indifferent. "The summer celebration is the only time I have free time, really. But it looks like that won't happen this year." He stood up from his chair.

"Why is that?"

"Because I'll be babysitting you, making sure nobody kidnaps your weak human ass." He gave her a cruel smirk and walked out of the cafeteria.

Way to ruin a nice conversation. Jerk.

* * *

beta'd by Springandbysummerfall


	3. The Ex

**Well hello! …I know right? I'm not dead! **

**I'll keep this short and sweet… Thanks to all who reviewed and read this so far and super special thanks to Springandbysummerfall for beta'ing.**

* * *

A loud knock jarred Bulma from her hazy thoughts. She was awake, but lying in bed thinking of her and Vegeta's conversation the night before, still reveling in the fact that the Prince actually acted decent to her.

"Good morning." Kakarot greeted cheerfully when she answered the door. "Just wanted to tell you, we will be docking in twenty minutes. Prince Vegeta wants you on the main deck in fifteen."

"Fifteen minutes? It's takes me longer than that to get ready!" She slammed the door on the poor soldier and looked for some clothes in her duffle bag. She decided on a pair of black leggings, a white and blue striped shirt dress, and a pair of boots that were knee high. She hurriedly ran a brush through her long hair and had just enough time to put on some make up.

She half-ran half-walked to the main deck. Vegeta was there with his arms crossed and an angry glint in his eye as he tapped his foot impatiently... No sign of the semi-polite Prince she had come across the night before.

…She was starting to see a pattern here. Did the guy ever smile?

As she walked up to him, the large door of the main deck opened, revealing a hangar full of fighter ships she could only assume belonged to the royal military. Vegeta exited, again not caring to look to see if Bulma was following.

Seriously, where did this guy get his manners? She shook her head. Was this guy a prince? She had met her fair share of royalty in her line of work, and none of them were as rude as this guy.

As she caught up with him, Bulma saw the King and Queen standing just inside the entry of the hangar. As the two approached, Bulma noticed the Queen locked her sights onto her son and smiled brightly, opening her arms to engulf him in a hug.

"My son, I'm glad you're home safe."

And, to Bulma's utter surprise…He hugged her back! The action stunned the hell out of Bulma. The man was actually showing affection.

The Queen was so dainty compared to her son and husband but still had the muscular build that all Saiyans had. She was quite beautiful, too. Bulma's memory of her didn't do her justice. She had long chocolate brown hair that flowed freely down her back and was wearing a loose fitting red dress. Her features were elegant and graceful…just one look at her screamed royalty.

The queen let go of her son and turned her gaze to Bulma.

"Bulma. It's been a while. You're all grown up! And so beautiful!" She stepped away from Vegeta and grasped her hands, giving them a gentle squeeze. "My son is lucky to sponsor such a lovely young woman."

Vegeta's eyes rolled and then grunted in disapproval at the comment.

Bulma, too, wanted to show the same feelings as Vegeta, but unlike Vegeta, she had manners. She decided to not acknowledge the last comment. "It has been a while, hasn't it? Last time I saw you, you were pregnant. That was what? 5 years ago?"

The queen nodded. "Just about. You should see Vaneesa now. She is growing so fast-"

"Stop smothering the poor woman, Kinoko." The King bellowed, interrupting his wife and stepping up to them.

The queen shot the elder Vegeta a glare. "Don't you have something to do, other than be a royal ass?"

The King waved a dismissing hand at her, making Bulma giggle. The two always seemed to be bickering.

"Miss Bulma, welcome. I'm glad you are here. Now if you will excuse me, I have somewhere to be, but my wife and my son will give you a tour of the palace and show you where you will be staying." He nodded to his son, then turned and strode off.

"Yes, I have somewhere to be also." Vegeta announced and started to walk off, but was stopped promptly by his mother grabbing hold of his ear.

"Didn't you hear your father? You will accompany Bulma, while we BOTH show her around." She pulled on his ear so he had to bend down so they were face to face. "And you will escort her properly," she said through a smile, but the way she said it, nobody, not even Vegeta would deny her. She let go of his ear and waited patiently until he did what he was told.

Bulma looked back and forth at the queen and the prince. Vegeta was clearly agitated and the Queen just stood there with a serene look… It was almost funny, but Bulma didn't dare laugh. The daggers that Vegeta was throwing at his mother with his eyes weren't doing anything to fluster the Queen. She just stood there, staring at her defiant son and waited patiently… she was a master of this skill. But you would have to be, Bulma thought, if you were married to King Vegeta and the mother of Prince Vegeta.

The Prince let out a slow growl and walked up to Bulma, offering her his arm. Bulma looked at the outstretched arm and then up at Vegeta.

"Any day now, Human." He growled.

She suppressed the urge to stomp her heel on top of his foot and tell him to "f" off, but decided against it, not wanting to suffer the Queen's wrath. She looped her arm around his and instantly jumped when she made contact with his skin… a weird tingly feeling shot up her arm and throughout her body. The feeling felt as it she were shocked by a jolt of electricity… but it didn't hurt and it certainly wasn't a bad feeling, it was a good tingly feeling… like her body was trying to tell her something.

'Must be static shock or something.' She thought to herself and shrugged it off.

"Splendid. Follow me." The queen gracefully turned around and walked towards the exit of the hangar, and Bulma and Vegeta followed suit.

Bulma was fairly familiar with the Palace, and although it had been a long while, she still knew vaguely where she was going. The queen knew this, so she took her into the royal wing first. This part of the castle she was not familiar with at all. As they walked down the long halls of the royal wing, Bulma had noticed that Vegeta seemed uncomfortable with her holding onto his arm. She was also a little uncomfortable, and the occasional tingle that zapped her wasn't helping, either. But she had to remember that, now that she was in the palace, any passerby, servant or palace guest had to be convinced that she was Vegeta's, and they had to act accordingly. They did, however, have to work on their performance. It was apparent to anybody that walked by them that the couple was uncomfortable with one another.

"This wing is where our living quarters are." The Queen announced. "This is mine and the King's sleeping quarters." She pointed to two huge wooden double doors that had the most beautifully intricate carvings on them. She recognized the royal family crest… but couldn't make out what else was carved on the doors.

They continued down the hallway lined with plush royal red carpet and big paintings of all the kings and queens that ruled the planet. They rounded a corner and came up to four more doors that looked similar to the King and Queens, but not as big. She stopped at the first two. "This one," she pointed to the one on her right, "is the princess' room. She will be home tomorrow. And this one" she pointed to the one on the left, "is Vegeta's." They walked to the next 2 doors. "We set you up in the one next to Vegeta." She walked up to the doors on the right and opened them, motioning them to enter.

Upon entering Bulma's mouth dropped open in shock. Her room back home may as well have been a broom closet compared to this one.

"This isn't a room, this is a small house." She let go of Vegeta's arm and looked around. From the entrance of the room there was a small entry way not big enough to be called a foyer. To the immediate right there was a small kitchen equipped with a decent sized fridge and a counter with two bar stools. After the kitchen there was a large living area that had a couch and a flat screen tv. But what made Bulma giggle with excitement was the floor to ceiling windows that lined the whole room.

Seeing this made Bulma happy, the queen walked over to one of the windows. "You have a balcony. To get out, just push the glass like this." She pushed on one of the windows and it glided opened. The way it did reminded Bulma of how a secret passage would open in an old movie. Both she and the queen stepped out onto the balcony. It was shaped like a half circle, and the edge of the balcony was lined with flowers Bulma had never seen before. There was a table and a couple of chairs and an umbrella positioned in the middle of a grassy area. They might call this a balcony, but it wasn't a balcony, this was a medium sized yard. The scenery was amazing. Since they were about 10 stories high you could see the mountains straight ahead and the greenest trees that lined the bottom of the mountains.

"The view is my favorite." The Queen said.

"I think it may be mine too!" Bulma looked over to Vegeta's Balcony. She could easily hop over to his no problem, that's how close it was. His was a little bigger than hers…it even had a pool.

The queen grabbed Bulma by the arm and gently led her back inside. Vegeta was leaning against the kitchen counter, his arms crossed and his usual look of boredom on his face.

"Will this take any longer? I have things to do." He was irritable… but then again, when wasn't he?

"Oh, hush up Vegeta, I think thirty minutes won't kill you. Bulma, why don't you check out your bedroom and see if it's to your liking then we will show you your work station. We don't want the prince to get any more cranky than he already is." She gave her son an exacerbated look and, in turn, he rolled his eyes at her.

Bulma walked away from mother and son, leaving them to bicker amongst themselves and into the bedroom. It was huge, like everything else. Her bed was a California king… Although she was sure they didn't call it that on this planet. On the opposite side there were two dressers and a vanity that led into yet another large room, which she could see now was the bathroom, complete with both a shower and a bath tub. After she picked her jaw from the floor from the sheer size of this place, she went back into the living room. The generosity from the royal family was almost overwhelming, she couldn't help her eyes that were getting misty.

"This is wonderful, thank you so much… But are you sure you don't want to give this room to someone else more important than me?"

Vegeta opened his mouth with, Bulma was sure, some sort of snide comment, but the queen jabbed him in the ribs before he could get it out.

"My dear girl, don't be silly. This is your room. We put you close to Vegeta for safety reasons. And you are just as important to the king and I as our own children." She took Bulma's arm and hooked it around Vegeta's. "Come now." She waved them towards the door. "Let's show you your work area."

The workspace they gave Bulma was just outside the royal wing, and it was probably just as big as her mini house of a room. She was pleased to see that it was complete with the necessary computers and tools she required, and to her delight it had floor to ceiling windows that lined the entirety of the room, just like her quarters.

Bulma was smiling ear to ear. "This is great!" She exclaimed as she circled the room. She had noticed that half of the boxes she had packed up that were labeled 'work' were already piled in the far corner of the room.

"Umm… I'll need to know where the medical wing is?" She asked sheepishly.

The queen nodded, and Vegeta gave her a quizzical look.

"Yes, your father had said you were accident prone when it came to your work."

Bulma chuckled and scratched the back of her head. "Yea, dad calls it accident prone, I call it dedicated."

The queen laughed. "Yes, the med wing is just 2 doors down, I'll take you there now." She turned to Vegeta. "Ok, son, you are free. Go do whatever you need to do."

He was already walking towards the door when she said so, grumbling something under his breath as he left Bulma's lab.

"I surely hope he puts on a better show than that at the ball tonight." The queen shook her head as she watched the prince stalk away. "Come dear, let's take you to meet the medical staff." She then looked at her thoughtfully. "Did you bring formal attire?"

Ha! Formal attire. She had some, but probably not the kind of formal that would suite a royal ball.

"No ma'am. I'm afraid I don't really own anything that I could wear to a ball." She shyly answered.

The queen looked her up and down and then circled her. "You're about my size. After we are finished at the med center, we'll pick you out a nice dress and get you ready for the ball. It's the first of many. This one will kick off the summer celebrations."

They walked to the medical wing, and she was introduced to the head physician. He was an older man with white hair and wire rimmed glasses, which Bulma found a little weird. She had never seen a Saiyan wearing glasses before. "Dr. Lance, this is Bulma Briefs. Prince Vegeta will be sponsoring her this summer."

Dr. Lance smiled at her and shook her hand. "It's very nice to meet you, Ms. Briefs."

"Dr. Lance," Bulma said as she shook his hand. "We're going to get to know each other very well."

The Doctor gave her a puzzled look.

"No seriously, you have no idea, Doc."

* * *

An hour later, Bulma walked out of the queen's room with a dress in hand and a satin bag full of jewelry the queen insisted she borrow. She told Bulma that she would send Bulma her personal hair and make up artist a couple hours before the ball. She also assured her that Vegeta would be at her door at 7pm sharp to escort her to dinner.

"Don't worry dear. My son will come around, don't let his steely posterior fool you. He's loyal, and will protect you. Sometimes, he just doesn't know what's best for himself."

Bulma wasn't too sure what to think of that… What did she mean by 'he just doesn't know what's best for himself?' She thought about what the queen had told her as she made her way back to her room. 'Ya well we'll see if he can restrain himself from being an ass. Although' she admitted to herself, 'I'm not exactly innocent either, but damnit, he was the one that usually started arguments in the first place!'

When she entered her room, she saw the remaining boxes labeled 'clothes' and 'personal items' had been delivered from the ship. She had a couple of hours before she expected the make up artist, so she unpacked everything and then tried to take a nap.

But sleep didn't come. Her mind wandered back to the reason why she was here. She had to find out if her father was still alive. She would talk to the king to see if he had heard any developing information.

She laid in bed thinking about her father and decided that laying around and worrying wasn't helping her mental state. Her father's situation was out of her hands, and the only thing she could do was to keep her promise that she made to him. As she rose from her bed, there was a knock at the door. She looked at the clock. 5pm already. How long did she wallow in her self misery? She made her way to her front door, and when she answered she was a little startled to see a man in his early thirties. He was dressed quite nicely in a black suit with a hot pink tie. Bulma also noted that he was an alien. He had light greenish blue skin, shiny rose colored lip gloss on… and was that eye liner and pink eye shadow?

"Bulma I presume?"

Bulma blinked a few times. "Uh… ya."

He smiled brightly and extended his hand. "I'm Jessup, I'll be dolling you up this evening." He brushed passed Bulma and looked at her expectantly. "Where's your bathroom, honey? We can't very well just stare at each other all evening." He said playfully as he eyed Bulma's living quarters appreciatively.

"This way." She led him to her bathroom and watched as he set up his things. He motioned for her to come closer. It wasn't that Bulma was afraid of Jessup, she had just never had her make up or hair done by anybody. She was more of a do it your self kind of lady and wasn't sure what to expect.

"Oh honey, I won't bite, come here, let me get a look at you." He took both her hands and eyed her from head to toe. "Oh yes, you do have beautiful hair, and those eyes!" He clapped a couple times and giggled. "You are just as cute as a dumplin' aren't you?" He circled her again and pushed her into the padded bench in front of the vanity and started rifling through his bag full of cosmetics. "We're going to have fun!"

"You're the queen's hair and make up artist?" She asked.

"Yes I am, I have been for five years and I love every second of it." He said as he started to comb through Bulma's locks. "I was so excited to be able to meet you! You've been the talk of the palace for the past three or four days! Ever since there was word that Prince Vegeta was sponsoring a woman from Earth."

"Really?" Bulma asked nervously. Vegeta wasn't joking that gossip spreads quickly throughout the palace and she really didn't like to be the center of attention.

"Oh goodness yes. You're one lucky girl. Prince Vegeta is wanted by every single woman on this planet, and other planets, too. He is very handsome and powerful, and when you mix those two features up, whew baby." He said fanning himself theatrically. "The Prince has only sponsored one other woman, and that was short lived. I'm sure you already know this, but the Prince is a little grumpy. He takes life too seriously if you ask me."

Bulma nodded in agreement. Yes, she was quite aware.

"But word spread that you don't take his nonsense… Is it true that you threw a wrench at him?"

"Ah, well, maybe." She giggled and blushed. So, Vegeta's soldiers were just as gossipy as everyone else, it seemed.

Jessup clapped excitedly and then went back to fiddling with her hair. "That is just too much." He chuckled. "Well, I guess what I'm trying to get at here, is that you are going to be one hated young lady after tonight."

"Oh?" Bulma questioned, panicked.

Jessup arched an eyebrow at her. "You have taken the Prince off the market. I'm sure there were plenty of ladies looking forward to the festivities this summer to get to Vegeta. He's the most eligible bachelor, well…was."

"Oh…" Bulma chuckled nervously. In a way, she felt bad. Vegeta was getting to the age where he might want to think about getting married. For all she knew, he was looking forward to meeting his future girlfriend or wife, and she was ruining his chances.

"So Jessup. Who was this other lady that Vegeta dated erm.. I mean sponsored?"

Jessup raised his perfectly sculpted eye brow and pursed his lips. "Well, she was beautiful. But a B-i-t-c-h." he whispered. "They were only together for about 2 months. You could tell that she just in it for herself, she wanted to marry him and gain all the power that came with it. And Vegeta was, I'm sure, using her for other means… if you catch my drift." Jessup wagged both his eye brows up and down. "Well anyway, Vegeta grew tired of her and dumped her skinny ass. She caused a scene in the courtyard, screaming and hollering at Prince Vegeta, and with Prince Vegeta yelling and screaming at her. Oh what a piece of work she is." He clucked his tongue. "There dumplin', how do you like the 'do?"

Bulma looked in the mirror. It was beautifully done. She had a French braid going from the very right to the left side of her head that led into a simple pony tail. It was simple but beautiful.

"I love it!"

"I know," he smirked. "Ok, time for make up." She sat back down and Jessup started on her face. "So how did you and the Prince meet?"

Crap! She and Vegeta didn't think about this. She quickly thought of something. "We've known each other since we were little. We just recently reconnected and thought we'd try dating each other… we always got along before." It was vague, but she couldn't come up with anything else on the spot.

Jessup bought it. "Awwww, that is just adorable, young love!"

Bulma smiled politely at him… If he only knew.

She and Jessup chatted and gossiped for another hour. She learned Madam Blendall, who was on the royal court, was cheating on her husband and the twin cousins of the Prince were in love with same man. Jessup surely had some juicy gossip.

She liked Jessup. It was nice to know she had made a friend already and he had given her so much information... Not bad for just landing on the planet seven hours ago.

When he was finished with her makeup, he left her alone to get dressed. She slipped on the dress the queen loaned her and looked in the mirror. It was a deep purple and it fit her perfectly. The bodice was strapless and hugged her tightly before flowing down from her hips to the ground with a slit that was thigh high. She had to admit, she looked good. She turned around and looked at her bed where her shoes sat and swallowed hard. Now to defeat her mortal enemy… stiletto heels.

She walked out slowly to her living area, ungracefully holding onto the walls for support. Jessup put his hands up to his face and smiled. "Oh dumplin' you're going to knock Vegeta straight on his ass when he sees you."

Bulma blushed. "Thanks for getting me ready. I appreciate it."

"It was my pleasure." He went up to Bulma and gave her a kiss on each cheek and waved good bye as he exited.

Not two minutes after Jessup left there was an authoritative knock on the door. She shook her head. She knew it was Vegeta, even his knocks had a grouchy sound to it. She carefully made it to the door, making sure she didn't trip and fall. These shoes were going to be the death of her.

She opened the door and couldn't help the gasp that escaped her lips.

Bulma wasn't expecting him to be down right handsome, while still intimidating, a mixture that was down right sexy.

He had on what looked to be black long sleeved under armor and silver armor with red trimming that covered his chest and torso area. It was the traditional Saiyan armor but fancier. She could tell it wasn't made for battle, it was much too thin. She noted the tight black pants and a pair of fancy military boots that were shin high that were polished, and a deep crimson cape that draped over his left shoulder that reached the floor. UMPH *fans self*

The prince smirked at Bulma. He knew he was looking particularly debonair tonight, and her aghast look confirmed it. "Are you ready to go?" He asked gruffly, trying to disguise the chuckle he was trying to keep in.

Bulma shook her head a little. She knew she was staring, she just couldn't help it. "Uh, yea! Come in real quick, I have to grab something." She backed up so he could come in. The cape bellowed behind him as he entered, which for some reason made him look even more intimidating and mischievous. She hurried past him and went into her bedroom to grab a shawl the queen had also let her borrow.

Vegeta watched as she went into her bedroom, thankful for a few moments alone. He needed a second to regain his thoughts. When she had answered the door, she had taken his breath away. He hated to admit it, but she was a beautiful woman to begin with. But, seeing her in that dress and made up so beautifully made his knees buckle.

'Bah!' He thought 'Just a pretty girl. Just a girl that annoys the crap out of me. Keep it together Vegeta, remember, she tried to hit you in the head with a wrench just a few days ago.'

She re-entered the room and eyed Vegeta. He was glaring at her and it seemed that he was having an inner war with himself. "What?" he growled.

Bulma shook her head and remembered her earlier discussion with Jessup. "Oh, we never spoke about how we met and decided to date, and of course Jessup asked me, so I just told him that we knew each other since we were kids and we just reconnected and decided to give it a go. I couldn't think of anything more inventive. But it's the truth, in a sense."

Vegeta nodded in agreement. "That should work. If anyone really wanted to dig for info, they would find that we have known each other since our childhood. And knowing Jessup, he's already blabbed to half of the staff. Now," he offered his arm to her. "are you ready for this?"

She nodded and took his arm and practically jumped when she felt the strange tingle zap her upon contact with him.

"Did you feel that?"

"Feel what?"

She furrowed her eyes. "Never mind." She shook it off. 'I must be going insane.' "Let's go."

* * *

beta'd by Springandbysummerfall

**For those who read my other fics, do not fret! I'm working on them too =) AND for those who haven't joined mine and Mallie_3's B/V community, we'd love to see you there. It's super active and we have a lot of super famous B/V authors on there. AAAAAND we host a B/V Video podcast on youtube (all links are on my profile).**


	4. The Ball

**Hi everybody! I'm glad to see some new readers as well as some returning ones =) glad to have you! I'm not going to lie… I'm having fun re-doing this fic. It's helping me get back into the swing of things. Trying to find that spark that will light a fire under by butt to update my other fics. I have forgotten how horrid my writing skills were back in the day... You can kind of tell, even in the revamped version, but I came to the conclusion that if I gave it a major _major_ face lift, it would defeat the purpose of this project. That doesn't mean I haven't tweaked a few things here and there... =) At any rate, I hope you enjoy.**

**Anywho, thanks for the reviews, I love them! **

**ALSO! This is unbeta'd. I got a little bored this evening and wanted to post something and my lovely beta reader is on a well deserved vacation. But don't fret! She'll be back for the next chapter to keep me in check =) I did go over this thing, like a million times, but I'm sure there are a few errors in this thing.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own dbz… but it I did, I'd create a spin off series that would focus mainly on B/V. yup, that sounds pretty neat.**

* * *

As they walked out of the royal wing and into the courtyard, Bulma halted.

"What's the matter?" Vegeta sighed, irritably.

She looked up at him, a determined look on her face. "Look, I know we aren't each others favorite person, but I want this to work. This is the last thing my father asked of me, and I'm not going to let him down. This will be a challenge for the both of us and I _never_ back down from a challenge." She cocked an eye brow at him "And you aren't the type a person to back down from one either. So let's sell this!"

He wasn't sure if she was trying to pep talk him or herself, but he agreed non-the less. "You have nothing to worry about… In fact, I know I'll do my part better than you, Human."

Bulma laughed out loud. "Please! I'm sure by the time the night is over, there will be no doubt that we are 'ga –ga' for each other, all because of me." She let go of him and crossed her arms. "I'm sorry Vegeta, but you don't seem to have one romantic, caring, or loving bone in your body."

He was starting to get irritated with the blue haired harpy, but she had a point. He wasn't the warm and fuzzy type. Public displays of affection and cuddling after sex was not his thing… but this didn't mean he couldn't act like he did. Plus, the woman issued a challenge, and like she said, he's not one for turning down a challenge. "I'm sorry, Woman, but the mere fact that you think you can do something better than me is laughable and you insult me by thinking I cannot pull something so simple off." He took her arm again, forcing her to his side. "I'm hungry, lets go."

"It's not an insult, it's a fact." She snarled. "I've known you since we were children, I know you are almost completely incapable of such emotions."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Contrary to what you believe, I have dated a few women and I know how to act around them."

"I'll believe it when I see it. Prince" she snorted.

Vegeta's frustration level was maxing out, but knew he had to keep his cool, or he'd lose this silly game of hers, and so when they entered the large and crowded banquet hall, he grabbed and kissed her, making her squeak out in surprise.

He took her face with both of his hands, looking her square in the eyes. "Game on, Woman." Vegeta 1. Bulma 0. He thought triumphantly. He smirked as he watched her dumbstruck face fill with a blush and knew she was trying so very hard not to screech at him for pulling such a drastic move.

She was so shocked that she couldn't come up with a witty retort.

He smirked evilly at her, took her by the hand and led her to their table. Bulma's cheeks flared even a deeper red when she noticed that their entrance had attracted a lot of attention. There were a lot of eyes on her and it was making her want to dive under a table.

"Laugh all you want, but I will win this." She gritted under her breath.

He let out a "Hmph." And pulled her chair out for her.

She smiled brightly at him. "Thanks, _Darling_." She gushed enthusiastically.

"Oh you are welcome, _Sweetness_." He said as he sat himself next to her with an even bigger smile, showing off his pearly white teeth.

Their exchange was attracting the attention of the occupants of their table, which included the King and Queen and two other couples that Bulma didn't know, but assumed were important since they were seated with the royal family. The queen was slightly shaking her head and had a hint of a smile on her lips whille the King was flat out laughing. The other four people smiled politely at the both of them. The two couples consisted of a middle aged couple who looked to be Saiyans, both of them had the trademark dark eyes and hair, the man looked familiar… she just couldn't place it. The other couple looked to be older and were not Saiyan. They were alien, other than human, she just couldn't place where they were from. They had red skin and very large bright green eyes that seemed to pop out of the heads.

"My dear, I would like for you to meet Captain Bardock of the Royal Army and his wife Celene." The Queen said, motioning to the Saiyan couple. Bardock bowed his head slightly and Celene smiled at her.

"It's very nice to meet you both." Bulma said with a genuine smile.

"Kakarot is their son." The king added.

Aha! Kakarot was a spitting image of his father, but definitely inherited his mother's soft eyes. "I thought you looked familiar! I got to know Kakarot on my way here. He is very nice. Congratulations by the way, I hear he will be getting married soon."

Celene's smile widened, and Bardock's half smile turned into a scowl. "He's too young to be getting married." Bardock barked out. Which in turn earned him a slap on the shoulder from his wife.

"Oh Bardock, hush up." She turned to Bulma. "Thank you, we are so very happy to be getting a daughter-in-law. Some people, just need to get over it." She gave her husband a side ways glance.

"Eherm." The King coughed. "And this is King Jordoon and Queen Hieline of Planet Simeon." The King and Queen gave her a polite smile. Bulma said hello, but they didn't really engage her in any conversation.

"Everyone this is Bulma Briefs, Heir to the Briefs Weaponry manufacturer and Broker Corporation. My son is sponsoring her for the summer." That earned smiles from everyone at the table...except Vegeta, of course.

She sat there for a while listening to the tables conversation. King Vegeta, and King Jordoon, who, Bulma decided, looked more like a cartoon fish with his huge eyes and lips, where talking politics. For a while, she tried to keep up, but soon gave up because she wasn't following who was who.

Queen Belinda, Celene, and Queen Hieline were talking about Kakaort and Lina's wedding; what Lina's dress looked like, and if they were going to do a traditional or a modern Saiyan marriage ceremony. Bulma made a mental note to ask what the difference was.

And finally Vegeta and Bardock where talking battle strategies.

While everyone else busied themselves with conversation, she took in her surroundings. They were in a banquet hall and there were about 500 quests at tables eating and conversing. She could tell some were royalty just by the way they dressed. She even recognized a few customers for hers and her fathers. Just outside the banquet hall she noticed there was an outside patio with a dance floor. She assumed that was where they were heading after dinner.

The poor girl sat there somewhat forgotten at the table while the other occupants talked amongst themselves. Vegeta made it a point however, to look at her every so often and smile at her or ask her if she needed anything. He would give her a smile, and to anyone else they would think the smile was full of love and caring, but Bulma knew better. It was him silently flipping her off and silently saying: 'top this sweetheart.'

As they were finishing the last course of their meal, Bulma was pulled out of her mental war with herself on whether or not the new ki blaster she was coming up with should have a laser scope or not.

"How about you Bulma?" Queen Kinoko asked turning her full attention on poor unsuspecting Bulma.

"What was that?" Bulma asked, slightly embarrassed she had been caught not paying attention.

"Do you think you and Vegeta will be getting married soon? You both seem to care for each other very much."

Those two sentences managed to halt the other two conversations at the table all together. Bulma looked at Vegeta and raised an eyebrow at him. Definitely not prepared for that question so soon in the evening. She then looked at Vegeta's mother, wondering why the bloody hell she would ask such a question. She obviously was amused by this whole thing. She sat there, her default, serene smile upon Bulma awaiting an answer.

She knew now where Vegeta got evil part from.

"I don't-" Vegeta began but Bulma cut in finishing his sentence.

"think we are that far along in our relationship to know just yet." She gave Kinoko a big smile and patted Vegeta on the hand. "Right, Veggie?"

Vegeta's eye twitched and flashed her 'I will murder you, if you call me that again' look and then quickly replaced it with a toothy smile.

"That's right, Little One."

Jerk! How could he remember that wretched nick name? He used to call her 'Little One' when they were children. She hated it when he called her that, just as much as she hated him calling her 'Human' or his new word for her 'Woman.'

Their answer must have sufficed because both Kings restarted their conversation. Celene nodded her head in agreement after telling them that was a good thing. "No need to rush into things." And then went back to talking to both Queens.

A few minutes later the King got up and got everyone's attention.

"Hello my friends." His low gravely voice boomed throughout the hall. "Thank you for being here on the first day of Planet Vegetasei's Summer Celebration. I hope that your meal was good. We will be moving tonight's festivities outside in just a few minutes…"

As the king spoke, Bulma's eyes wandered to the guests. Everyone had their eyes on King Vegeta except for one person. It was a girl, just about Bulma's age. She had platinum blonde hair and looked to be human. Although Bulma didn't think she was. Her skin seemed to be dusted with pearl, giving her a beautiful glow. The woman was down right gorgeous…and she was staring at Vegeta and startled Bulma by turning her stunning pink eyes at her, her beautiful face turning into a deep scowl. She tried to ignore her stares for a few more moments, but couldn't help but squirm in her chair under her displeased glower.

Bulma leaned over to the Prince. "Umm, Vegeta?"

"What?" He whispered irritably.

"Who is that?" She stealthily pointed at the woman. "She's giving me the death glare."

Vegeta looked and quickly spotted her. "A fu-" he trailed off. "Damnit. That's all we need."

"What?" she looked at him now, turning her back to the King who was still speaking to the crowd. "Is that the ex-girlfriend?"

Vegeta growled in flustered despair and quickly grabbed Bulma by the hand and quietly so not to disturb his fathers long winded speech and took her to the courtyard, away from the prying eyes and ears of the guests.

"What the hell is going on?" Bulma asked again.

"Her name is Odessa and yes to answer your question, she is my ex-girlfriend. She's here to make a scene, I'm sure of it! She's crazy! She wouldn't take no for an answer when I broke things off with her a year ago, and she has been trying to get back together ever since." He looked away from Bulma and scratched his chin. "I didn't think she would be coming here though, I heard she latched onto another Prince." His mouth turned into a straight line and looked at Bulma. "Just try to stay away from her."

"Ok." Was all Bulma could say. Who knew Vegeta, the prince of all Saiyans had ex girlfriend drama.

He led them to the outside dance area where everyone was by now. The song the band was playing faded into a slow tempo'd one just as they reached the edge of the dance floor.

Vegeta took her by surprise, not even asking her if she'd like to dance. He just twirled her out to the middle of the dance floor and took her in his arms, taking the lead. She didn't peg Vegeta for a dancer. He was moving smoothly, keeping up with the slow tempo. He bent down and whispered in her ear. "There are a lot of people watching us. Sell it, woman."

Bulma did what she was told and rested her head on his chest and wrapped her left arm around his waist. She felt him rest his chin on the top of her head and squeezed her right hand with his, silently telling her she was doing the job right.

The zapping feeling seemed to intensify as they continued their dance. It was making her feel warm and safe.

It made her feel like she belonged here…with…him.

This was nuts! Of all people to even have an inkling of those kinds of feelings, Vegeta was NOT one of him. She tried remembering the fish gut incident, just to remind herself of just who this guy was and the countless pranks and hurtful things he had said to her. She concentrated on all of those memories, just to keep things in perspective. She had a mission, and getting infatuated with Prince Vegeta was not going to help her.

The song ended and she hesitantly let go of him, and shyly looked him in the face. Her cheeks suddenly felt hot and knew she was blushing like an idiot.

"I…um..I'm going to get something to drink, you want something?"

He shook his head 'No' all the while giving her a confused look.

"Ok, I'll be right back." She hurriedly turned to the bar and all but ran towards it.

She immediately ordered a shot to calm her nerves. She enjoyed that dance a little too much.

Bulma rested her elbows on the bar and dug her hands into her hair, almost ruining her beautiful fish tail braid. Why couldn't her father be good friends with another King? Someone that had an ugly son, so not to tempt her.

Her hands fell out of her hair and her eyes bugged out of her head for a moment, realizing what she had just thought. Something, she honestly, didn't want to ever admit. Yes, Vegeta was gorgeous. She could see why she would think that…

_No!_ She screamed at herself. _No! Stay focused! Vegeta may be hot, but he's an ass. And yes, he is my 'protector' but that's it. Nothing more. Dad gave us one last thing to do, and dammit I'm going to do it! No distractions from hot, toned bodied A-hole prince's!_

She straightened her back, finding her new found determination and waited patiently for her drink to be given to her.

As she waited for her shot, she felt someone come up next to her.

Bulma knew who it was before she even looked to her left. It was Odessa. Vegeta said she was here to cause trouble… Bulma turned slightly so she wouldn't accidently make eye contact with her and prayed that she would keep to her self.

"So," Her velvety voice rang out and Bulma's shoulders slumped and turned to face her. She knew ignoring her now wasn't going to be a choice. "you're who everyone is talking about." She said as she took the glass of wine that the bartender put in front of her. "Although I can't see what the big deal is." She smiled, wickedly.

"Excuse me?" Bulma asked, snatching the shot that was given to her and tossed it back.

Odessa continued as if she didn't hear her. "You don't strike me as his type. I mean, you're a weapons designer for goddess sake." She rolled her eyes and laughed.

The bartender gave Bulma another shot. It didn't last too long on the table top. She immediately took the shot and then slammed it down. The sound of the shot glass being slapped onto the bar got the bartenders attention. She pointed to her empty glass telling him she wanted another, and then turned to Odessa giving her a look, daring her to continue.

Bulma snarled. "I don't remember asking your opinion regarding mine and Vegeta's relationship."

Odessa took another sip of her wine and shook her head, giving her a smug smile. "I'm just being truthful." She said in a mock sympathetic way and patted Bulma on the hand and l snickered when Bulma snatched her hand away from her. "You're nothing but a commoner. Nothing will come of this…" she waved her hand at Bulma in an almost disgusted manor. "…whatever you and him have going on between the two of you."

Bulma grit her teeth and counted to ten in her head, but when she got to ten, she found that the little trick didn't work. Odessa still was next her, spewing more unwarranted crap.

"Tell me, does Vegeta enjoy screwing a bastard child of a washed up weapons broker?"

This was not the time to insult her father. Too much has happened to her in a short amount of time for her to keep her cool. She turned to walk away, but at the last minute decided against taking the high road.

Before Bulma knew what she was doing, she slammed down her third shot and like lightening grabbed a handful of platinum blond hair and with her other hand, pinned Odessa's left arm behind her, making it so she couldn't move.

"Let go of me!" The blonde screeched.

"It's one thing to insult me, but no one talks shit about my dad." Bulma hissed in her ear.

She tightened her hold of Odessa's hair and slammed her face down onto the bar, as hard as she could, praying she'd see at least one or two of her perfect teeth fly out of her stupid mouth.


End file.
